Starkville School District board president Keith Coble said it was a financial compromise to settle former high school principal Kathi Wilson”s lawsuit against the district, not an admission of guilt.
“This is a situation where the board was concerned with extensive legal fees and chose to do what was in the best interest of the school district,” Coble said Wednesday.
In their minutes from the closed session of March 8, the board found that “the claims asserted by Kathi Wilson against the district and Judy Couey are defensible.”
They also said it was a fact that the district “would likely prevail on the pending claims if the case were tried.” The decision was made to settle what the board called her “doubtful claim” for financial reasons.
“The cost to the district in time and money of further defending this case would be more than any amount which might be awarded to Kathi Wilson, in the unlikely event that she prevailed at trial,” the minutes state.
The board made the decision to settle, and paid Wilson $30,000 to discontinue the case and save the district the cost of a lengthy trial. This settlement enabled the district to “utilize funds saved to educate the children of the district,” the board stated in its minutes.
In closed session, Eric Heiselt made the motion, seconded by Coble, to settle. The vote was unanimous. Pickett Wilson was board president at that time.
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